A rare, cotton candy-colored lobster that was caught near Maine’s border with Canada escaped getting steamed in a pot and will take up residence at a Canadian aquarium.

Canadian fisherman Robinson Russell, 38, caught the lobster off Grand Manan Island in December and decided to donate the 2-pound crustacean to an aquarium in Saint Andrews, New Brunswick.

Robinson Russell, a Canadian lobsterman, posted this photo of a white lobster on Instagram back in early December, soon after he caught it. This week it was reposted on Instagram in Maine. The lobster is still on display at an aquarium in St. Andrews, New Brunswick. Photo by Robinson Russell

“Lucky” the lobster will be on display at the Huntsman Marine Science Centre’s aquarium for the remainder of the summer and fall seasons, Russell said.

“I really didn’t know what to do with it at first, so I decided to give it to the aquarium,” Russell said in a telephone interview Tuesday night.

His 5-year-old daughter, who was thrilled to see such a unusual lobster, will now be able to visit Lucky whenever Russell takes her to Saint Andrews. The aquarium opened May 19 and will remain open until Oct. 14.

Russell said he posted a photograph of the lobster on Instagram back in December, soon after he caught Lucky, but it wasn’t until this month that the picture created a stir on Instagram. Russell said a Maine lobsterman spotted the unusual colored lobster and reposted it on Instagram.

“I have no words. I also now have a new obsession,” one woman wrote.

“Thank you. This is so cool,” another Instagram user posted.

Russell, who has been fishing for most of his life out of Grand Manan Island, captains a lobster boat called “Guardian 2011.” More than 2,300 people live on Grand Manan Island in New Brunswick, the largest island in the Bay of Fundy. The island is located near the Washington County towns of Lubec and Cutler.

Dennis Hoey can be contacted at 791-6365 or at:

dhoey@pressherald.com

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